Light-Weight Temporary Bridge System and Building Method thereof

ABSTRACT

A light-weight temporary bridge system includes a weight balance structure-module, constructed at a first abutment; a bridge tower structure-module, including a bottom part fixed to the weight balance structure-module and a top part coupled to the weight balance structure-module via at least one first cable; and a crossing structure-module constructed between the first abutment and a second abutment, coupled to the weight balance structure-module and coupled to the top part of the bridge tower structure-module via at least one second cable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a light-weight temporary bridge systemand building method thereof, and more particularly, to a light-weighttemporary bridge system realized by the asymmetric cable-stayed bridgestructure and building method thereof.

2. Description of the Prior Art

In recent years, nature disasters such as typhoons and flood frequentlyoccur due to the extreme climate. When the serious nature disasteroccur, bridges may be damaged and the road connecting to the mountainresidual communities may be cut off, resulting in that the mountainresidual communities become isolated and the transportation of therescuer and relief supplies may encounter difficulties. In response tothe situation of the nature disaster damages the bridges and the bridgescannot offer the normal traffic functions, many countries activelydevelop temporary bridges equipping with the feature of rapidassemblage, to relief the traffic problem and the island effect due tothe road discontinuity.

The common temporary bridges include a cement culvert riverbed sidewalkand a steel temporary bridge. However, during the constructing processesof the cement culvert riverbed sidewalk and the steel temporary bridge,the workers are required to build foundation supports (e.g. bridgepiers) at the riverbed. If the nature disaster rapids the streamvelocity of the river, the cement culvert riverbed sidewalk and steeltemporary bridge cannot be constructed due to the safety concerns andthe time of rescue and relief supplies entering the disaster areas istherefore delayed. In addition, the materials and construction machineryof the cement culvert riverbed sidewalk and steel temporary bridge arehard to prepare which further delays the time of completing the cementculvert riverbed sidewalk and steel temporary bridge. Thus, how to usesimple construction machinery and portable materials to construct thetemporary bridge becomes a topic to be discussed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides alight-weight temporary bridge system realized in the asymmetriccable-stayed bridge structure and building method thereof.

The present invention discloses a light-weight temporary bridge system,comprising a weight balance structure-module, constructed at a firstabutment; a bridge tower structure-module, comprising a bottom partfixed to the weight balance structure-module and a top part coupled tothe weight balance structure-module via at least one first cable; and acrossing structure-module constructed between the first abutment and asecond abutment, coupled to the weight balance structure-module andcoupled to the top part of the bridge tower structure-module via atleast one second cable.

The present invention further discloses a building method of alight-weight temporary bridge system, the building method comprisingconstructing a weight balance structure-module on a first abutment;coupling a bottom part of a bridge tower structure to the weight balancestructure-module and coupling a top part of the bridge tower structureand the weight balance structure-module via at least one first cable;and constructing a crossing structure-module between the first abutmentand a second abutment, wherein the crossing structure-module is coupledto the weight balance structure-module and is coupled to the top part ofthe bridge tower structure-module via at least one second cables.

These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt becomeobvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment that isillustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a light-weight temporary bridge systemaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a segment exploded view of the light-weight temporary bridgesystem shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an implementation of a gradientsection.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an implementation of the tower bridgestructure shown in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5A-5D are schematic diagrams of the processes of constructing thelight-weight temporary bridge system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a process according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Please refer to FIG. 1, which is a schematic diagram of a light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. The light-weight temporary bridge system 10 may be atemporary bridge for crossing roads damaged by the nature disasters, andis not limited herein. As shown in FIG. 1, the light-weight temporarybridge system 10 is realized in an asymmetric cable-stayed bridgestructure and comprises a weight balance structure-module 100, a bridgetower structure-module 102 and a crossing structure-module 104. Theweight balance structure-module 100 and the bridge towerstructure-module 102 are constructed on an abutment Al, wherein theweight balance structure-module 100 is not only directly coupled to abottom part of the bridge tower structure-module 102 but also coupled toa top part of the bridge tower structure-module 102 via a plurality ofcables 106 (e.g. steel cables). The crossing structure-module 104 iscoupled to the weight balance structure-module 100 and coupled to thetop part of the bridge tower structure-module 102 via a plurality ofcables 108 (e.g. steel cables). Note that, FIG. 1 only shows parts ofthe cables 106 and 108 for illustrations. Via the counterweight providedby the weight balance structure-module 100 and the bridge towerstructure-module 102 and the horizontal/vertical pulls provided by thecables 106 and 108, the crossing structure-module 104 can be constructedbetween the abutments A1 and A2 by a cantilever method, to realize apath across a gap G (e.g. a discontinuity of the roads or a bridge).Since the crossing structure-module 104 is constructed by the cantilevermethod, the workers can construct and complete the light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 at a side of the gap G (e.g. the abutment A1)without building any foundation support (e.g. the bridge pier).

In details, the weight balance structure-module 100, the bridge towerstructure-module 102, and the crossing structure-module may be consistedof a plurality of modular components, and the modular components may beconnected to each other by bolts and connecting plates, to achieve thegoal of convenient transportation and rapid assembly. Please refer toFIG. 2, which is a segment exploded view of the light-weight temporarybridge system 10 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the weight balancestructure-module 100 is consisted of segments 100_A, 100_B and 100_C.The segments 100_A, 100_B and 100_C all comprises 5 main girders W_G, 2side girders W_SG and 2 box beams W_BB, wherein only the main girdersW_G, side girders W_SG and box beams W_BB of the segment 100_A arelabeled in FIG. 2 for illustrations. The main girder W_G and the sidegirder W_SG may be H shaped girders, and the 5 main girders W_G and the2 side girders W_SG are connected to each other via the 2 box beamsW_BB. In addition, shackles are configured on the side girders W_SG forconnecting and fixing the cables 106. In this embodiment, the maingirders W_G and the side girders W_SG are H shaped girders, the lengthof which is 4 meters and the section size of which is H294×200×8×12.According to different applications and design concepts, the lengths andthe section sizes of the main girders W_G, the side girders W_SG and thebox beams W_BB may be appropriately altered, and are not limited herein.

Since the section size of the segment 100_C may be different from thatof the crossing structure-module 104, the side of the main girders W_Gconnected to the crossing structure-bridge 104 may equip with gradientsections for connecting to the crossing structure-module 104. Pleaserefer to FIG. 3, which is a schematic diagram of an implementation ofthe gradient section. In FIG. 3, the length of the gradient section is 1meter, a section size of a side A is H294×200×8×12 and a section size ofa side B is H410×200×18×20. In this embodiment, the section size of theside A is equal to the section size of the main girders W_G connectingto the segments 100_A and 100_B and the section size of the side B isequal to that of a main girder C_G of the crossing structure-module 104.According to different applications and design concepts, the lengths andthe section sizes of the gradient section may be appropriately altered,and are not limited those shown in FIG. 3.

Please back to FIG. 2, the bridge tower structure-module 102 comprises 2main girders T_G and 2 box beams T_BB. In this embodiment, the maingirders T_G may be the H shaped girders with H294×200×8×12 section sizeand the 2 main girders T_G are connected to each other via the box beamsT_BB. Via the bolts and connecting plates, the main girders T_G arefixed to the side girders W_SG of the segment 100_C, respectively. Inaddition, the main girders T_G also equip with the shackles for fixingthe cables 106 and 108. Please refer to FIG. 4, which is a schematicdiagram of an implementation of the bridge tower structure-module 102.In FIG. 4, a height of the main girder T_G is 6.5 meters and a distancebetween the main girders T_G is 3 meters for allowing vehicles to pass.In addition, the box beams T_BB are located at 3 meters and 5.5 metersheight. According to different application and design concepts, theheights of the main girders T_G, the distance between the main girdersT_G, and the heights from the bridge platform to the box beams T_BB maybe appropriately altered and are not limited to those shown in FIG. 4.

Please back to FIG. 2, the crossing structure-module 104 is consisted ofsegments 104_A-104_E, wherein all of the segments 104_A-104_E comprise 5main girders C_G and the segments 104_A-104_D further comprise crossbeams C_CB. In order to simplify illustrations, only the main girdersC_G and the cross beam C_CB of the segment 104_A are labeled in FIG. 2.The cross beams C_CB are not only used for connecting and fixing thecables 108, but also used for connecting the 5 main girders C_G.According to the structure shown in FIG. 2, the workers may separatelyassemble the segments 100_A-100_C, 104_A-104_D and the bridge towerstructure-module 102 and then sequentially connects the segments100_A-100_C and the bridge tower structure-module 102 by the bolts andconnecting plates at the abutment A1. Via the counterweight provided bythe weight balance structure-module 100 and the bridge towerstructure-module 102 and the horizontal/vertical pulls provided by thecables 106 and 108, the workers sequentially connect the segments 100_C,104_A-100_E by the cantilever method and accomplish the light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 realized in the asymmetric cable-stayedbridge structure. Since the crossing structure 104 is built by thecantilever method, the workers construct and complete the light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 at the abutment A1 without building anyfoundation support at the gap G and provide the path across the gap G.Further, since the light-weight temporary bridge system 10 is realizedin the cable-stayed bridge structure, the vertical pulls provided by thecables 108 can reduce the deformations generated by the live loads (e.g.vehicles, motor cycles or people) moving on the crossingstructure-module 104 and the horizontal pulls provided by the cables 108tightens the connections between the segments 104_A-104_E of thecrossing structure-module 104.

Note that, the weight balance structure-module 100 and the bridge towerstructure-module 102 are required to be realized by the materials withgreater density for providing the sufficient counterweight. Moreover, inorder to prolongs the length sustained by the weight balancestructure-module 100 and the bridge tower structure-module 102, the maingirders C_G of the crossing structure-module 104 are required to berealized by the light-weight composite materials, wherein the density ofthe light-weight composite materials is required to be smaller than thatof the materials of the weight balance structure-module 100 and thebridge tower structure-module 102. For example, the materials of themain girders W_G, T_G, the side girders W_SG, the box beams W_BB, T_BBand the cross beams C_CB may be the steel, the aluminum, the alloy ofthe steel and the aluminum, the concrete and the reinforced concrete;and the materials of the main girders C_G may be one of the Glass FiberReinforced Plastic (GFRP), the Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP),the Kevlar Fiber Reinforced Plastic (KFRP), the Basalt Fiber ReinforcedPlastic (BFRP), the Hybrid Fiber Reinforced Plastic, . . . etc. and arenot limited herein.

Please refer to FIGS. 5A-5D, which are schematic diagrams of theprocesses of constructing the light-weight temporary bridge system 10shown in FIG. 1. First, the workers may utilize the working vehicle tolift 5 main girders W_G and 2 side girders W_SG to parallel positionsand utilize the bolts to connect the box beams W_BB, the main girdersW_G and the side girders W_SG. Via repeating the above procedures, thesegments 100_A-100_C can be accomplished. Next, the workers lift thesegments 100_A-100_C to the fixed positions on the abutment A1 via theworking vehicle and connect the segments 100_A-100_C via the connectingplates (e.g. steel web connecting plates), to form the weight balancestructure-module 100 shown in FIG. 5A. After the weight balancestructure-module 100 is accomplished, the workers may lay the bridgedeck plate on the weight balance structure-module 100 for the subsequentconstructions.

Next, the workers may lay multiple sleepers on the ground to form atemporary working platform. The main girders T_G is lifted to thetemporary working platform and the distance between the main girders T_Gis greater than the length of the box beams T_BB. Via lifting the boxbeams T_BB to the fixed locations, the workers connect the main girdersT_G and the box beams T_BB by the bolts and the joists. In addition, theworkers further assemble the shackles utilized for fixing the cables106, 108 to the main girders T_G and sequentially connect the cables106, 108 and the shackles. The bridge tower structure-module 102 islifted to the top of the segment 100_C and connected to the side girdersW_SG by the bolts. The workers then assemble the cables 106 and theshackles on the side girders W_SG of the segments 100_A-100_C and adjustthe lengths of the cables 106. After the above procedures, the weightbalance structure-module 100 and the bridge tower structure-module 102shown in FIG. 5B can be acquired.

When assembling the segment 104_A, the workers may utilize a cross beamC_CB as a temporary assembling platform. After 5 main girders C_G ismoved to the fixed locations on the cross beams C_CB, the workersconnect the main girders C_G on the cross beams C_CB and assemble a topflange stiffener, a bottom flange stiffener (i.e. connecting plates) tothe main girders C_G by few bolts for avoiding the top flange stiffenerand bottom flange stiffener drop. After the above procedure iscompleted, the workers lift the segment 104_A to the fixed location andconnect the main girders C_G of the segment 104_A and the main girdersW_G of the segment 100_C by the steel web connecting plate, theprepositioned top part stiffener, bottom part stiffener and the bolts.The workers then assemble the cables 108 to the shackles of the crossbeams C_CB and adjust the lengths of the cables 108. Till the aboveprocedure is completed, the workers remove the cables of the workingvehicle and the segment 104_A is constructed above the gap G via thecantilever method, as shown in FIG. 5C. For the subsequentconstructions, the works configure the positioning angle for fixingbridge deck plates and lay the bridge deck plates on the segment 104_A.

Via repeating the procedures of assembling the segment 104_A andconnecting the segments 104_A and 100_C, the workers separatelyaccomplish the segments 104_B-104_D and sequentially connect thesegments 104_A-104_D. When assembling the segment 104_E, the workercouple 5 main girders C_G to the positioning angle and lifting the 5main girders C_G together with the positioning angle to the fixedlocation. The workers then connect the segment 104_E to the segment104_D via the steel web connect plate, the top flange stiffeners, thebottom flange stiffener and the bolts, as shown in FIG. 5D. Finally, theworkers configure the positioning angle for fixing bridge deck platesand lay the bridge deck plates on the segment 104_E and the light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 realized in the asymmetric cable-stayedbridge structure is completed. The transport path between the abutmentsA1 and A2 is therefore acquired.

Via utilizing the counterweight provided by the weight balancestructure-module 100 and the bridge tower structure-module 102 and thevertical/horizontal pulls provided by the cables 106 and 108, thesegments 104_A-104_E of the crossing structure-module 104 aresequentially constructed between the abutments A1 and A2 (i.e. above thegap G) by the cantilever method. In other words, the workers constructand complete the light-wright temporary bridge system 10 at the abutmentA1 and provide the path across the gap G without building any foundationsupport at the gap G. Furthermore, since the light-weight temporarybridge system 10 is realized by the cable-stayed bridge structure, thevertical pulls provided by the cables 108 can reduce the deformationsgenerated by the live loads (e.g. vehicles, motor cycles or people)moving on the crossing structure-module 104 and the horizontal pullsprovided by the cables 108 tightens the connections between the segments104_A-104_E of the crossing structure-module 104.

According to different applications and design concepts, those withordinary skill in the art may observe appropriate alternations andmodifications. For example, the numbers of the segments in the weightbalance structure-module 100, the bridge tower structure-module 102 andthe crossing structure-module 104 may change according to differentdesign concepts and are not limited to those shown in FIG. 1. Inaddition, the composition of each segment and the connection methodbetween segments in the weight balance structure-module 100, the bridgetower structure-module 102 and the crossing structure-module 104 can beimplemented in various methods and are not limited to those shown inFIG. 2 and FIGS. 5A-5D.

The process of the above embodiments constructing the light-weighttemporary bridge system 10 can be summarized into a process 60 shown inFIG. 6. The process 60 can be utilized in building the light-weighttemporary bridge system with the asymmetric cable-stayed bridgestructure and comprises the following steps:

Step 600: Start.

Step 602: Construct a weight balance structure-module on a firstabutment.

Step 604: Couple a bottom part of a bridge tower structure to the weightbalance structure-module and coupling a top part of the bridge towerstructure and the weight balance structure-module via at least one firstcable.

Step 606: Construct a crossing structure-module between the firstabutment and a second abutment, wherein the crossing structure-module iscoupled to the weight balance structure-module and is coupled to the toppart of the bridge tower structure-module via at least one secondcables.

Step 608: End.

According to the process 60, the workers first assemble at least onesegment (e.g. the segments 100_A-100_C) of a weight balancestructure-module at a first abutment (e.g. the abutment A1) and connectthe at least one segment via the bolts and the connect plate, toconstruct the weight balance structure-module. After assembling a bridgetower structure-module, the workers connect the bottom part of thebridge tower structure-module to the weight balance structure-module andconnect the top part of the bridge tower structure-module and the weightbalance structure-module via at least one first cable (e.g. the cables106). Next, the workers assemble at least one segment (e.g. the segments104_A-104_E) of a crossing structure-module and utilize at least onesecond cables (e.g. the cables 108) to sequentially complete theconnections between the weight balance structure-module and the at leastone segment of the crossing structure-module and the connections betweenthe at least one segment via the cantilever method. As a result, thecrossing structure-module is built between the first abutment and asecond abutment (e.g. the abutment A2) and a path across the gap betweenthe first abutment and the second abutment is completed. The detailoperations of the process 60 can be referred to the above, and are notnarrated herein for brevity.

To sum up, the above embodiments build the light-weight temporary bridgesystem realized in the asymmetric cable-stayed bridge structure via themodular components which are easy to be transported. Via thecounterweight provided by the weight balance structure-module and thebridge tower structure-module and the vertical/horizontal pulls providedby the cables, the crossing structure-module across the gap can be builtabove the gap via the cantilever method. In other words, the workers canconstruct and complete the light-weight bridge system at a side of thegap without building any foundation support at the gap, so as to rapidlyprovide the path across the gap.

Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerousmodifications and alterations of the device and method may be made whileretaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the abovedisclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and boundsof the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A light-weight temporary bridge system,comprising: a weight balance structure-module, constructed at a firstabutment; a bridge tower structure-module, comprising a bottom partfixed to the weight balance structure-module and a top part coupled tothe weight balance structure-module via at least one first cable; and acrossing structure-module constructed between the first abutment and asecond abutment, coupled to the weight balance structure-module andcoupled to the top part of the bridge tower structure-module via atleast one second cable.
 2. The light-weight temporary bridge system ofclaim 1, wherein the crossing structure-module is constructed betweenthe first abutment and the second abutment via a cantilever method. 3.The light-weight temporary bridge system of claim 1, wherein densitiesof the weight balance structure-module and the bridge towerstructure-module are greater than a density of the crossingstructure-module.
 4. The light-weight temporary bridge system of claim1, wherein the weight balance structure-module is consisted of one ofthe steel, the aluminum, the alloy of the steel and the aluminum, theconcrete and the reinforced concrete.
 5. The light-weight temporarybridge system of claim 1, wherein the bridge tower structure-module isconsisted of one of the steel, the aluminum, the alloy of the steel andthe aluminum, the concrete and the reinforced concrete.
 6. Thelight-weight temporary bridge system of claim 1, wherein the crossingstructure-module is consisted of a composite material.
 7. Thelight-weight temporary bridge system of claim 6, wherein the compositematerial is one of the Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic (GFRP), the CarbonFiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP), the Kevlar Fiber Reinforced Plastic(KFRP), the Basalt Fiber Reinforced Plastic (BFRP) and the Hybrid FiberReinforced Plastic.
 8. The light-weight temporary bridge system of claim1, wherein the weight balance structure-module, the tower bridgestructure-module, the crossing structure-module are consisted of aplurality of modular components.
 9. The light-weight temporary bridgesystem of claim 8, wherein the modular components are connected by boltsand connecting plates.
 10. A building method of a light-weight temporarybridge system, the building method comprising: constructing a weightbalance structure-module on a first abutment; coupling a bottom part ofa bridge tower structure to the weight balance structure-module andcoupling a top part of the bridge tower structure and the weight balancestructure-module via at least one first cable; and constructing acrossing structure-module between the first abutment and a secondabutment, wherein the crossing structure-module is coupled to the weightbalance structure-module and is coupled to the top part of the bridgetower structure-module via at least one second cables.
 11. The buildingmethod of claim 10, wherein the step of constructing the crossingstructure-module between the first abutment and the second abutmentcomprises: constructing the crossing structure-module between the firstabutment and the second abutment via a cantilever method.
 12. Thebuilding method of claim 10, wherein densities of the weight balancestructure-module and the bridge tower structure-module are greater thana density of the crossing structure-module.
 13. The building method ofclaim 10, wherein the weight balance structure-module is consisted ofone of the steel, the aluminum, the alloy of the steel and the aluminum,the concrete and the reinforced concrete.
 14. The building method ofclaim 10, wherein the bridge tower structure-module is consisted of oneof the steel, the aluminum, the alloy of the steel and the aluminum, theconcrete and the reinforced concrete.
 15. The building method of claim10, wherein the crossing structure-module is consisted of a compositematerial.
 16. The building method of claim 15, wherein the compositematerial is one of the Glass Fiber Reinforced Plastic (GFRP), the CarbonFiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP), the Kevlar Fiber Reinforced Plastic(KFRP), the Basalt Fiber Reinforced Plastic (BFRP) and the Hybrid FiberReinforced Plastic.
 17. The building method of claim 10, wherein theweight balance structure-module, the tower bridge structure-module, thecrossing structure-module are consisted of a plurality of modularcomponents.
 18. The building method of claim 17, wherein the modularcomponents are connected by bolts and connecting plates.